


The Elekk in the Room

by flyingllamas



Series: modern!AU shenanigans [1]
Category: Warcraft - All Media Types, World of Warcraft
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Background Guinea Pig shenanigans, M/M, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Service Dogs
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-06
Updated: 2018-06-06
Packaged: 2019-05-19 02:16:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,849
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14864741
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flyingllamas/pseuds/flyingllamas
Summary: Most of Halduron and Aethas' problems would be solved if they just talked it out...but that would be too simple for them.(Rommath is going to kill them both if they don't get this figured out.)--A modern!AU take on the Warcraft universe, as thought up collectively on the Disaster Elves Discord server.





	The Elekk in the Room

**Author's Note:**

> An odd little series that spawned from a series of discussions on the Disaster Elves Discord server. Magic is much rarer in this universe, and most everything is near to what we're used to in our own world...with a few exceptions. Druid cryptids? Lost legends running an archaeology and magic theory blog? Single dads falling in love with their daughter's dance instructors?
> 
> This AU has it all.
> 
> If it's not clear, the Zandalari pigs are guinea pigs. Gelert is a Lordaeron shepherd, a cross between a German Shepherd and a Collie. Tiberius is just...a leggy monster that's some sort of mutt.
> 
> Special thanks to Windchaser, Rivkael, and the rest of the bunch over at the Disaster Elves Discord for beta'ing this.

Halduron isn’t sure what’s awoken him at first. 

 

The paranoia, the lack of easy sleep is something that his time with the Farstriders left him with. He’ll never not startle awake during the night, thinking some rotten thing is about to rip out his throat. It’s why he makes a poor bedmate for most, why he usually leaves as soon as the flavor of the night falls asleep.

 

Tonight is no exception to this.

 

As he tries to calm himself, taking deep breaths and forcing his hands to unclench from sheets, he can hear shuffling in the next room over. Aethas with Tiberius, their new wolfhound-mastiff-something foster, no doubt. Sure enough, the fishbowl bubble of anxiety breaks and Halduron  can finally hear whining from the dog and the hushed, tired rasp of Aethas’ voice as he tries to calm him when. Sighing, Halduron swings his legs out of bed and pulls on a shirt. Gelert props his head on his dog bed as Halduron passes, evaluating his owner for residual signs of stress or impending mental breakdown. Halduron stops to scratch him behind the ear and praise him before going to check on his flatmate.

 

The sight before him, lit by the night light in the corner of Aethas’ bedroom, is near comical.

 

Tiberius sits with Aethas amidst the collapsed and box spring frame of Aethas’ already flimsy bed. Aethas is trying to comfort the wolf hound to no avail and the Zandalari pigs in their penned area in the corner are calling out their distress. 

 

“Everything okay here?” Halduron asks and Aethas finally looks, noticing him for the first time.

 

“Yeah, Tiberius just got scared of something and tried to join me in bed,” he says, patting the still-trembling dog’s back. “The bed, it, um...it definitely decided that it was only built for one, as you can see.”

 

“I can,” Halduron says. The carnage truly is impressive. One of the wooden support struts from the box spring has impaled Aethas’ pillow and feathers are slowly raining down in the room. Aethas leaves Tiberius for a moment to reach into Petunia and Oscar’s pen, petting the pigs and letting them smell him. Slowly, the squeaking settles back into silence.

 

When Aethas stands again, Halduron can see something dark on his arm.

 

“Aethas, come here,” Halduron calls and the other man obliges. This close, Halduron not only can see that he’s wearing ratty plaid pajama pants and an old shirt with the logo from Dalaran University printed on it, but also a gash in his forearm. It’s not too deep, but it’s bleeding enough to stain Aethas’ shirt. Despite the size of it, it still takes Aethas a moment to notice it.

 

“Oh, that,” he says distractedly. “Really, it’s nothing.”

 

As if to prove a point, Aethas tries to step past his flatmate. Halduron anticipates his buckling knees and catches the redhead by his uninjured arm. 

 

“It probably is,” Halduron agrees, “but your body is in a bit of shock from it. Let me wrap it up for you and I’ll take care of everything, Tiberius included.”

 

For his credit, Tiberius whines.

 

Aethas tries to wave him off, saying, “You need to sleep, let me take care of it,” but Halduron firmly manhandles him towards the bathroom. Aethas’ skin is entirely too pale under his freckles, but it could be the crappy fluorescent lighting, Halduron thinks. Regardless, he makes Aethas sit on the toilet seat as he cleans and wraps up the wound. 

 

“Really, I can handle clean up,” Aethas says when he finishes. “It was my idea to not crate Tiberius tonight.”

 

“We’re both fostering him, Aethas,” Halduron points out. He helps Aethas up once more. Aethas is no longer swaying but he still looks too pale for Halduron’s liking. “You should get some sleep, I know you have that meeting tomorrow with Jaina and she’s likely to be a giant bitch...again.”

 

Aethas almost looks like he’s going to agree, but then he notices where Halduron has steered him. “This isn’t the couch.”

 

“You’re right, it isn’t,” Halduron agrees and pushes his friend through the doorway to his room. Gelert looks up briefly to watch whatever shenanigans his owner is getting up to, before settling back down to doze once more.

 

“I’m not taking your bed!” protests Aethas and he tries to push past Halduron, only to be stopped by the other man placing his hands on his shoulders once more and steering him back towards the bed.

 

“It’s big enough for both of us.” Unlike Aethas’ former sad excuse for a bed. “I’ll be joining you after I clean up because a night of sleep on that couch might be worse than a death sentence. Don’t worry, I’ll try not to cuddle you too much.”

 

He’s pleased to see the color finally return to Aethas’ face once more, even if it is a blush from teasing. Aethas finally settles down onto the bed, no doubt thinking of the torture that would await him if he actually decided to sleep on the couch himself. And truly, Aethas probably doesn’t have to worry about cuddling as far as Halduron is concerned -- on their movie nights, Aethas was always the first to fall asleep on Halduron’s shoulder and would nearly plant himself in his lap if allowed to sleep undisturbed. 

 

“As long as you’re sure it doesn’t bother you,” Aethas mutters when Halduron goes to clean the mess up. 

 

Halduron pauses long enough to flash him a smile and assure him, “No, not at all.”

 

It’s the truth. Despite the rude awakening, Halduron might be a little more pleased about the situation than he should, even if there’s probably zero chance of anything happening. He’s enjoyed Aethas’ predelication to touch and snuggle more than he should and if he were willing to admit it to himself, he probably harbors a small crush for his flatmate. Lor’themar has tried to get him to admit as such over drinks regularly.

 

He’ll not admit that though, because Halduron Brightwing does not ‘do’ crushes. He ‘does’ one night stands and hookups, leaving a trail of bruised hearts and cold beds in the morning in his wake. He doesn’t do commitments, doesn’t get too close because honestly, who wants to deal with a war vet with nightmares even after all these years?, and doesn’t get attached because why bother when he’ll just lose them in the end, just like he lost so many to the Scourge. It’s just a world of hurt for everyone in the end.

 

He can, though, appreciate his cute flatmate, the way he talks with his Zandalari pigs and all the pets they look after in their pet hotel, the way he flushes under his freckles when customers try to talk to him, the way he giggles when Halduron needles Rommath enough to make the other man prickle with rage. He can appreciate the lazy Sundays together, curled up on the couch under a blanket together and watching old cartoons, and the way Aethas loses himself when he’s demonstrating part of their routine for the kids in Rommath’s dance class. He can appreciate the way that Aethas imparts small kindnesses unto others and leaves a better world in his wake, leaves a better man in Halduron than he was two years before they met.

 

Aethas deserves someone who won’t use him and leave him, who isn’t so broken by war, who will help raise him up like Aethas already does for everyone around him. He’s told Lor’themar again and again and again…

 

Halduron Brightwing is not that person.

 

He’s mostly alone in his thoughts as he tries to sweep up the feathers and gather the wooden jetsam into a pile out of the way of the Zandalari pigs and the rest of Aethas’ daily route. His only company comes in the form of the animals around him. Tiberius watches him mournfully from where he lays in the doorway, head upon his paws, and he can see the flash of reflective eyes by nightlight from the Zandalari pig’s pen and hear soft sounds as they root around in their bedding. They offer no counsel for his thoughts and Halduron is left alone to stew, soberly for once, over the redhead wrapped in his blankets in the other room.

 

When he’s finished, he orders Tiberius from the room. The dog hasn’t shown an interest in the Zandalari pigs yet but even without the active threat of Tiberius’ interest, the pigs are likely to be stressed by his presence. Tiberius slinks off to the living room and Halduron hears the protesting squeak of the couch not long after.

 

At least someone will find comfort in sleeping on Hell’s trampoline tonight.

 

He takes a moment before he re enters his room to study Aethas, seemingly already sound asleep under the covers. He’s laying on Halduron’s favorite side of the bed, but Halduron is willing to give it up if Aethas is rested enough tomorrow to be spared Rommath’s pre-coffee morning wrath. His red hair fans out around his head on the pillow, wild and messy despite Aethas’ attempts to tame it in a braid. 

 

Aethas is not as asleep as Halduron thought though, because he lifts his head and mumbles, “Everything okay?”

 

“Yep, I just finished cleaning up,” Halduron tells him softly and enters the room finally, closing the door behind him. “You better not be hogging all the blankets.” 

 

Aethas murmurs something that sounds like disagreement and settles back down on the bed. He shucks off the shirt that he put on when he got up and Aethas is tired enough to not blush or comment on its absence. He only scoots over further when Halduron slips under the covers. Aethas positively radiates warmth and it’s hard for Halduron to resist snuggling him.

 

He doubts Aethas would care at this point, but come morning the other man would probably have a coronary.

 

“Thanks, ‘duron,” Aethas mumbles after they lay in silence for a few moments. Halduron reaches out to touch Aethas’ back lightly and is surprised when he pushes against the touch, like a cat arching its back.

 

“I’m not going to sacrifice you to that awful couch, or to Rom,” Halduron says. “I’m not cruel.”

 

At least, he’s not to Aethas...he can’t help but think of the things he did in the name of peace during the Scourge invasion.

 

Aethas doesn’t say anything to that and Halduron realizes that he must have fallen asleep at last. He lets his hand stroke Aethas’ back once, twice, feeling the lazy rise and fall of Aethas’ sleepy breathing, before pulling away.

 

No, he definitely doesn’t have a crush. Just...an infatuation. It will fade in time, he consoles himself and flips over to surrender himself to sleep once more.

  
  


* * *

  
  


He’s not surprised when, come morning, he wakes with his nose buried in Aethas’ hair. Sometime during the night, Halduron has gravitated over to his normal side of the bed and firmly planted himself there, despite the body already laying on that side of the mattress. Their legs are tangled together and Aethas’ shirt has ridden up above his soft stomach, where Halduron’s arm is draped.

 

Halduron sighs and resigns himself to hugging Aethas tighter. Despite the softness of this moment, the quiet of his mind he’s not felt in years after waking, and his inner tranquility, he knows this won’t last for long. Still, it’s a wonderful feeling, being curled around Aethas like this, enjoying the ways that Aethas is soft where Halduron himself has always been lean muscle and bone, and he knows this is something he’s going to look back on for years.

 

It’s still before dawn, before Aethas needs to get up and iron out his shirt and pants and throw his hair up into a bun or ponytail and rush out the door to the hotel, coffee in hand (with Halduron following him with his forgotten breakfast), so Halduron just lays there and strokes the warm skin of Aethas’ stomach. He’s a little surprised that, this close to another person, he’s not sporting morning wood, but that could be because of how relaxed he’s feeling.

 

It inevitably comes to an end when Aethas stirs slightly, moaning as he reaches his arms out in a stretch. Halduron smiles when Aethas settles himself back into his embrace, hand resting on the arm about his stomach. 

 

“Morning, sunshine,” Halduron murmurs against the freckled skin of Aethas’ neck. Light, he wishes he didn’t possess this level of self control, because he longs to press kisses against the skin under his lips, trace lines between the freckles with his tongue. But he won’t, because he knows his indulgence so far is going to shake their friendship enough.

 

He can feel the exact moment when Aethas snaps to full awakeness, when his body tenses to the point of probably being painful. Halduron tightens his grip around the redhead’s waist and not too soon, because Aethas immediately tries to bolt out of bed. Aethas writhes and his elbow smashes into Halduron’s nose, causing him to groan and let Aethas go. Aethas shoots out of bed and then gasps at the bloodied mess of Halduron’s face.

 

“Before you say anything, it’s fine,” Halduron tells him but it doesn’t stop the frantic babbling from spilling out of Aethas’ mouth.

 

“I’m sorry! I’m so sorry, I probably gravitated toward and oh Light, this is so awkward, I should have just slept on the couch --” Halduron tunes out the anxiety fueled rambling just long enough notice  _ why _ , exactly, Aethas is acting so skittish. He might not have been affected by their spooning, but Aethas certainly is.

 

Unfortunately, Aethas notices his gaze before he can return it to his face. Before he can say anything else, Aethas lets out a sob and dashes from the room. Halduron huffs out an angry sigh and punches his pillow. The bed dips slightly when Gelert jumps up next to him. The dog licks his arm and looks at him meaningfully. They’re off routine and upset flatmate or no, it will be worse if they proceed through the day without it.

 

Aethas is gone by the time Halduron drags himself out of bed and into the shower. The other man probably didn’t stop to iron his shirt, which worries Halduron because Rommath will surely chew him out for the wrinkles...especially because they were meeting with Jaina and Modera today. 

 

Fuck, Aethas is going to be a mess when he got home that night. If he even came home.

 

Tiberius is also absent, likely having gone with Aethas to the pet hotel. So, too, are Petunia and Oscar, probably tucked into Aethas’ apron pockets with carrots to eat. The toaster in the kitchen is cold, as is the coffee maker, meaning Aethas skipped breakfast. Again.

 

Halduron bandages his still-bleeding nose and heads out to the pet hotel after helping Gelert into his vest and locking up their small apartment. He’s not surprised to find the dogs already loose in the yard, Tiberius included, and all the animals fed. Even anxious, Aethas would not abandon his duties to the animals. Oscar and Petunia snuffle around their pen with a few of the foster pigs. They sniff and lick his hands when he offers them, holding none of the trepidation of their owner, but ultimately wander off when he offers no food to them.

 

The day drags by slowly, only interrupted by a few check ins and outs. Lor’themar is ignoring his phone again, likely busy with the dodgeball tournament he’s hosting at the gym that night or with his daughter, Salandria. Halduron doesn’t quite have the nerve to text Aethas anything meaningful other than a picture of Gelert, asleep with his legs in the air.

 

He doesn’t respond.

 

The monotony is broken up in the late morning when he receives a text from a contact marked with a fire emoji and an angry face. Rommath.

 

_ What did you do to my assistant this time? _

 

Most texts from Rommath start like this. Halduron texts back, _ why do u always assume its my fault? _

 

_ Because it usually is and after running through a list of our acquaintances in his presence, his face turned red as a tomato when I said your name. What. Did. You. Do. _

 

Ever the logical approach from Rommath. The poor man probably made Aethas stand before his desk and interrogated him until he was satisfied. So why was he asking?

 

His fingers fly over the touch screen, irritated, asking _ why dont u ask him? _

 

_ Do you think I haven’t tried that already? He’s clammed up more than usual. _

 

_ Brightwing, I will hunt you down and make a suit from you and your dog if you don’t answer me. _

 

He knows Rommath is serious with that threat. The man usually has little patience for anything other than perfection and Halduron routinely makes it his goal to be less than perfect in his presence. Halduron admits finally after a few more threatening texts,  _ his bed broke last night and he slept in mine.  _ And then,  _ we woke up spooning and he smashed my nose with his elbow. _

 

_ Light above. Would it hurt you two to stop dancing around the Elekk in the room like a pair of idiots? _

 

_ I’ll calm him down but you had better be prepared to talk him when you both get home tonight. _

 

_ Find the last romantic bone in your body and make him that curry he likes or something and talk this out. _

 

_ If this interferes with work again, I’m firing him and murdering you. _

 

Rommath says nothing after that but Halduron doesn’t expect him to. His point has been made. Halduron runs a hand through his thick, golden hair as he studies the text before him. Light, he wishes that Lor would answer his damn texts.

 

Still, Halduron finds himself wandering down to the Bazaar during lunch and picking up the ingredients for Aethas’ favorite curry, as well as something to eat for himself. Gelert carries the bag back to the hotel in his mouth, tail wagging happily. 

 

Aethas lets himself into the hotel through back door as Halduron begins to close for the day. He’s blushing, but he at least makes eye contact with Halduron when he walks by the counter.

 

“Hi,” he says, softly. Halduron notices that the shirt he’s wearing is wrinkle free.

 

“Hey,” Halduron greets. “Rom lend you a shirt?”

 

“Yeah,” Aethas admits. He ties his apron on and kneels down next to the Zandalari pig play area takes up most of the front room. Oscar and Petunia waddle over to greet him, and he pets them before putting them in his apron pockets. They enjoy staying by him as he goes through his duties for the evening.

 

“That man is so weird,” Halduron says. He sees a bit of the tension melt from Aethas’ shoulders and he wonders what Aethas was expecting to come back to. “Does he just have a closet in his office full of pressed suits and shirts?”

 

“Something like that.” 

 

Halduron gives the release command to Gelert, who bounds up to Aethas happily. Petunia and Oscar squeak out threats (or perhaps greetings) when Gelert stands, one leg propped on Aethas’ thigh, to sniff them. Either way, Aethas scratches Gelert behind the ears and gently instructs him to get down. Halduron says nothing when Aethas lets himself in the back room and only smiles when Aethas peeks his head through the door not moments later.

 

“Did you feed all of them?” Aethas asks.

 

“Maybe.”

 

Aethas’ lower lip sticks out in a pout when he says, “Halduron, that’s my job. You have enough to do without taking over my duties.”

 

“I did it before you joined,” Halduron tells him. “It’s not a big deal, and it lets us go home a little early.”

 

The look on Aethas’ face definitely tells Halduron that he’s aware some game is afoot, but Aethas decides not to fight it. Instead, he lets Tiberius in from the side yard and clips on his leash. Halduron pulls on his jacket and grabs Gelert’s leash (really just for appearances at this point, for Gelert wouldn’t leave his side even on pain of death) and holds open the door for Aethas.

 

“Shall we?” he says. Aethas ducks out and Halduron locks up behind him.

 

“Oh? What does Gelert have?” Aethas has noticed the bag in Gelert’s mouth. The dog isn’t willing to give it up yet since they’re not home, and Halduron silently thanks his companion for his tenacity. 

 

“It’s a surprise,” he tells Aethas. 

 

Some part of him that sounds suspiciously like Rommath whispers an idea to him and he reaches out to place a hand at the small of Aethas’ back, guiding the other man through the throngs of people getting off work for the day or going to dinner. Aethas starts slightly and the blush returns to his face, but he says nothing on the entire way home. 

 

Aethas tries to make a beeline for the kitchen when they get in, but Halduron beats him to it and snaps a towel at him.

 

“Out,” he orders. “Go change into something more comfortable at least.”

 

“It’s also my night to cook,” Aethas points out indignantly. “Halduron, what is going on? Is it because of this morning? Because you don’t have to--”

 

Halduron snaps the towel at him again and Aethas yelps when it hits his leg. “Out,” he orders again. “I said it was a surprise.”

 

Aethas huffs at him but leaves the kitchen, Zandalari pigs still chattering in his pockets and Tiberius at his heels. Gelert helpfully brings over the bag with ingredients and puts it on the counter while Halduron peels off his jacket and lights the burners on the stove top. When Aethas returns, he’s in the ratty plaid pajama pants and Dalaran t-shirt again, his hair thrown over his shoulder in a casual braid.

 

“Oscar and Petunia in their pen?” Halduron asks. Aethas nods and sits down at their crappy table with his phone.

 

“So I’ve figured out your surprise,” says Aethas. “It’s hard not to smell it across the house.”

 

“You should be happy, then,” Halduron says, stirring the thickening sauce. 

 

When Aethas says nothing in return, Halduron looks back over his shoulder to see Aethas giving him a considering look.

 

“Yeah,” he finally says. “I guess I am.”

 

“What was that look for?”

 

“Just...something Rommath said at work today,” Aethas says, looking back down at his phone once more. “He was right, as usual.”

 

“Do I want to know?”

 

“Probably not.”

 

Halduron sets the plate of curried chicken down before Aethas and gets a bright smile for his efforts. Gelert settles down on the cool tile in the kitchen before the trash can, hoping to intercept any scraps, while Tiberius floats around the table and tries to look like he’s not begging. 

 

“Really, you didn’t have to,” Aethas says. There’s not much more objection before he tucks into it though. 

 

“I know,” Halduron says. He sits down next to Aethas with his own plate, but he mostly ends up pushing his food around with his fork and watching Aethas. Should he rip the bandage off quick, he wonders, or try to talk his way out of this? There’s no guarantee that Aethas feels the same way, no matter what Rommath’s opinion on the matter is, and even if he does...even if he does, Halduron is definitely not the best person he could be with.

 

As soon as Aethas finishes eating, he grabs Halduron’s barely touched plate and takes it with his own to the sink. Halduron is too late to stop him from doing the dishes, it seems, so he settles for taking the trash out. When he comes back inside, Aethas has settled on the couch, dogs at his feet. He pats the space at his side and Halduron sits next to him, heavily. Any speech he might have prepared vanishes from his mind and he’s left staring at his clasped hands in his lap. Gelert, sensing his distress, shoves his nose into his hands. Both he and Aethas reach to stroke his head and Tiberius whines, jealous.

 

“I...this isn’t an easy talk to have, for either of us I think,” Aethas says quietly. “I’m trying, though, because I think Rommath will murder me if I come into the office tomorrow without having had it.”

 

“He’s said something similar to me,” Halduron admits and Aethas laughs softly.

 

“I guess…” Aethas sighs, and tries again. “I...I probably like you a bit more than I should. I know you’re not really interested and you’re not much for relationships that last beyond one night, but I guess that’s why I overreacted this morning. 

 

“I thought I was dreaming until suddenly I wasn’t and not only did that hurt like hell to realize, I’m afraid I pushed you too far and made things awkward and you were angry.”

 

He lapses into silence and after a few more false starts from Aethas, Halduron grabs his hand to settle him. It’s now Tiberius who shoves his nose between their knees, licking their joined hands. 

“First, I’m fairly certain that I was the one who cuddled you without permission,” Halduron says. “Light’s sake, Aethas, if I weren’t alright with you cuddling me, movie nights would have been awkward long ago. I kept telling you that it was fine, but I get that you probably weren’t hearing  me through your anxiety.

 

“Second…” He sighs again and looks up at Aethas, who won’t meet his eyes. “Second, you’re right. I’m not usually interested in relationships, but that’s because I’m selfishly afraid of losing people close to me. It’s some weird residual thing that I’m still holding onto, years and years after I was discharged from active combat duty, but I can’t seem to shake it the fear, the avoidance...except with you.”

 

Aethas finally looks up then and meets his gaze. His eyes are suspiciously shiny, probably with unshed tears.

 

(Aethas has always been a crier -- it doesn’t matter if it’s gay swans being happy together or if it was a sad movie, he cried...and Halduron was usually nearby with the tissues.)

 

“I’m not someone you should want to be with Aethas,” Halduron admits. “I’m broken in a lot of ways and I end up hurting people around me badly all the time, because I can’t stop myself from taking and taking and taking. I’ll hurt you, even if I don’t want to.”

 

Aethas grabs both of his hands then and kneels before him. Tiberius takes this as an invitation to lick his face, but he ignores the dog. “Halduron, I know. I know all of these things, but you haven’t hurt me yet, and I’m not so blind as to think you never will. That’s part of being a normal person. 

 

“Rommath...Rommath told me today that if you never take chances, if you ward off every possibility of being hurt in your life, you’ll be more miserable than if you ever did get hurt,” he continues. “I was a bit afraid too, afraid of making you mad or losing your friendship...but I think it will hurt more if I just let things stay where they are now.” 

 

“I’m surprised he said that,” Halduron mutters bitterly, “considering how miserable he acts now.”

 

“Halduron! I’m trying to be serious!” Aethas’ pout is back, but it has the opposite effect than he intended on Halduron, who breaks out laughing. “Hey!”

 

He pushes Halduron slightly and the dogs bark in alarm. Halduron laughs, but the the sound is muffled when Aethas surges up and presses his lips against his own. It’s awkward, chaste, and everything expected a first kiss from Aethas to be, and that’s why he can’t stop himself from kissing back, from reaching out for Aethas and pulling him onto his lap. 

 

He shouldn’t do this, shouldn’t kissing Aethas so deeply and sinfully that the redhead on his lap gasps for air, shouldn’t be pursuing this even though his heart sings with joy at Aethas’ touch. He finally finds it within himself to back from Aethas and the view waiting for him is divine: Aethas sitting in his lap, panting and lips swollen. The whining of the dogs is muted in the background, washed out by the roaring of the blood in his ears. Light, he shouldn’t have done this, should have thought before he, as always, ruined one of the few good things he had--

 

Before he can further regret his impulse, Aethas puts a hand over his mouth. “Not a word,” he says. “No thinking either. Right now, I just want you to kiss me. We can talk through your worries later, though I will assure you now: it makes no difference to me.”

 

And this time, when Aethas angles his head to press his lips against Halduron’s own…

 

His mind is silent for the first time since the war, filled only with bliss.

  
  



End file.
